Released on Valentine’s Day 2025, Apple TV’s The Gorge looked set to be a game-changer for the horror-romance genre. There are some fantastic romantic horror movies, but these are still relatively rare, and The Gorge‘s plot was instantly intriguing. Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller play Drasa and Levi, two elite snipers who fall in love during a mysterious mission.
Drasa and Levi are tasked with preventing The Gorge‘s mutated creatures from escaping. While they are initially forbidden to communicate, they soon begin to bond from opposite sides of the chasm between them. Unfortunately, The Gorge falls short despite its ambitious premise and excellent main stars, due to issues with the movie’s character development and surprising final ten minutes.
The Gorge Could Have Been The Best Horror-Romance In Years
Many horror romances blend genres, with Nosferatu being a tragedy while Lisa Frankenstein takes the opposite approach as a horror-comedy. The Gorge brings action into the mix, introducing a new power couple to the horror genre, with Levi and Drasa being capable of fighting for themselves and each other. The new angle and interesting details could have made The Gorge into an iconic horror-romance.
The movie had some standout moments that would not have been out of place in a romantic comedy, showing the two playing chess, playing music, and zip-lining across the gorge to visit each other. When the two inevitably end up inside the gorge, Drasa does not become a typical “damsel in distress” stereotype. However, the story falls apart in the final ten minutes.
The Gorge Was Basically Perfect Until The Final Ten Minutes
The Gorge is a masterful genre-bending mystery that introduces cosmic body horror at the perfect moment. While some of the story might have been a little predictable for sci-fi fans, watching the events unfold is fun, and the visual effects are excellent. Unfortunately, just as it looks as though the movie is going to be perfect from start to finish, The Gorge‘s ending doesn’t stick the landing.
Levi and Drasa could have met many different fates, but as with many great romances, there is a happy ending when the two meet up in France, as they had planned to do. However, the movie skims over crucial plot points, like how Levi survives and what he does while traveling to Drasa. These unanswered questions leave the ending feeling ultimately unsatisfying.
Will The Gorge Get A Sequel?
Writer Zach Dean told The Direct that while original ideas are hard to do in Hollywood, he wants more original franchises. He explained that “I have ideas, particularly for a prequel.” This could take the characters in an interesting direction because their romance was so essential to the story. That said, it may not be a bad idea to develop their characters while incorporating flash-forwards.
The Gorge has been trending for nearly a year, and is still worth watching, with audiences giving it a 74% positive Rotten Tomatoes score. It is currently Apple TV’s #2 worldwide trending movie, according to Flixpatrol, and the continuing interest in the movie suggests that viewers may be interested in seeing what happens to Levi and Drasa. However, another The Gorge movie might not be a sequel at all.
Source: The Direct
